Quirky roles no mystery to Lake Zurich native
Lake Zurich native Mario Mazzetti admits he rarely plays the romantic leads in shows.
“I am 22,” Mazzetti says. “And because of the way I look — some people say I look like a 12-year-old — I generally play younger characters. Or I play the quirky characters in a show.”
And here he is playing another young, quirky character in the comic murder mystery “Something's Afoot” at Citadel Theatre in Lake Forest.
Mazzetti plays Nigel Rancour, the young nephew of the wealthy, mysteriously murdered Lord Rancour.
“He is the black sheep nephew,” Mazzetti says. “He is the most obvious suspect from the start. He believes he is the legal heir to the Rancour fortune.”
He is also thoroughly unlikable. He drinks too much, and he offers up nasty, but funny, side comments about the other characters.
“And,” Mazzetti adds, “he is always hitting on the women in the show. He is very driven by his liquor and his libido.”
As you may have guessed by now, there is something quirky about this 1976 musical. “It is a murder mystery musical that is both a spoof and homage to Agatha Christie,” Mazzetti explains. “All the characters are trapped on an island, just like in Christie's ‘Ten Little Indians.' And just like in ‘Ten Little Indians,' one by one they die.”
But in this show, the characters die in ridiculous ways. One character, for example, is killed by a scone.
“There are booby traps all over the house,” Mazzetti says. “And all of the characters have a reason for wanting Lord Rancour dead.”
In the center of all this chaos is an amateur detective, not unlike Christie's Miss Marple. “She had read a lot of Agatha Christie,” Mazzetti says. “And she has decided that she is the right person to solve this mystery. The only problem is is that she is frequently wrong.”
Mazzetti is thrilled to be in the show, in part because of his love of musicals and mysteries.
“I love this show,” Mazzetti says. “It is very funny, but it is also very complex.”
<b>“Something's Afoot”</b>
<b>Location: </b>Citadel Theatre Company, 300 S. Waukegan Road, Lake Forest, (847) 735-8554, <a href="http://www.citadeltheatre.org" target="_blank">citadeltheatre.org</a>
<b>Showtimes: </b>8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday through June 5
<b>Tickets: </b>$32-$35